Great Demon Sun Wukong-Chapter 857 - 755: Counterattack

Chapter 857 -755: Counterattack

At this moment, however, the Pioneer did not immediately appear. And now the situation had taken a sharp turn for the worse, with Ling Weiyang in a very disadvantageous position. Although he had mastered the Power of the Stars, he had not yet had a chance to wield it before two-thirds of it had been taken by the Pioneer. Moreover, the Pioneer was hidden while he was exposed, making his situation even more precarious. All of this was a trap set by the Pioneer. Originally, the Pioneer planned to resurrect using the Dragon Emperor’s body and then erase Sun Wukong’s consciousness for his reincarnation. However, the Dragon Emperor was sealed by Tang Sanzang, causing him to lose the resurrection vessel. Thus, he had no choice but to use his backup option, the body of the Underworld Venerate, for his resurrection.

The body of the Underworld Venerate, however, was not a real living organism; it was created by the Underworld God Army from the flesh and blood of countless lives, resembling a human form. As a result, using the Underworld Venerate as a vessel significantly limited the Pioneer’s power. At that time, the Pioneer conceived a plan to use the Dragon Ancestor’s Power of the Dragon and Ling Weiyang’s Power of the Stars to vitalize the Underworld Venerate’s body, making it as lifelike as possible. Thus, he deliberately allowed the Dragon Ancestor and Ling Weiyang to kill him multiple times, hoping they would notice the Birth God Stele.

Sure enough, as the Pioneer anticipated, Ling Weiyang was indeed drawn to the Birth God Stele. The Pioneer initially intended for the stele to distract Ling Weiyang while he seized the opportunity to absorb the scattered Power of the Stars. However, he didn’t expect Ling Weiyang to cooperate by actively sending the Power of the Stars into the World Suppressing Stele, which saved the Pioneer considerable effort. The Pioneer remained hidden because he needed time to merge the Power of the Dragon and the Power of the Stars, perfecting his new body.

As for how the Underworld God Army created the body of the Underworld Venerate as a backup vessel for the Pioneer and how the Pioneer entered it, this began with the Sky Realm Trial. During the trial, the Pioneer secretly followed Sun Wukong and his companions, hiding so well that Sun Wukong and the others never noticed. When Sun Wukong defeated Tongtian, the Twelve Ancestral Witches, controlled by “that person,” deliberately approached Sun Wukong and were subsequently taken into the World Within the Artifact. It was then that the Pioneer also entered and hid within without anyone discovering him.

Later, Sun Wukong inherited Dao Zhun’s legacy, greatly enhancing his understanding of space. He eventually connected Dao Zhun’s Mystic Space with the World Within the Artifact and established a space-time tunnel for communication between the two. During that time, the Pioneer found the body of the Underworld Venerate and modified it to serve as his backup vessel. Now, this backup vessel was truly useful. Otherwise, the Pioneer would have had to reincarnate randomly, which would be troublesome if the new host had its own consciousness.

Since the Sky Realm Trial, the Pioneer had been secretly observing Sun Wukong’s actions within the World Within the Artifact. He also knew of the Annihilation Nine Headed Serpent’s actions. Learning that it spared Sun Wukong’s consciousness, the Pioneer decided to take matters into his own hands. Furthermore, he knew that Tang Sanzang and Zhu Bajie had long been controlled by “that person,” but he didn’t know how Tang Sanzang later broke free, gaining the ability to act and think independently. This eventually led Sanzang to destroy Hou Yi, transcend the soul of the Underworld Venerate, and seal the Dragon Emperor.

The ability of Tang Sanzang to transcend the soul of the Underworld Venerate was familiar to the Pioneer. It was “that person’s” most formidable power. It seemed that “that person” intended to use Tang Sanzang as a vessel for reincarnation. However, now “that person” could only resort to backups, and even Hou Yi was gone. This lack of haste by the Pioneer was why he was here looking for ways to enhance his power.

Not keeping Ling Weiyang waiting long, the Pioneer slowly appeared before him. The Pioneer now looked somewhat different, resembling his true form more closely, similar to Sun Wukong. His power had clearly increased, the most evident change being the emergence of fine black-gold dragon scales on his body, and patterns of stars faintly appearing around him. Ling Weiyang knew the Pioneer had refined the Power of the Stars, making the situation truly dire.

“Alright, you’ve been fighting long enough. Now it’s my turn. Consider it the second round, and know that the World Suppressing Stele is unstoppable, even without using its abilities!” With that, the Pioneer motioned toward the World Suppressing Stele, and the nine steles swiftly aligned in a three-by-three grid before him. Pointing at Ling Weiyang, the nine steles shot toward him like arrows.

Knowing the World Suppressing Stele’s hardness, Ling Weiyang immediately used his star points to dodge the oncoming Burning Fire Stele. Just as he reappeared, a second stele was already upon him, forcing another star point relocation. Each time he dodged, the next stele was already in pursuit. The nine steles pursued Ling Weiyang relentlessly, with increasing speed. Unable to resist, Ling Weiyang continuously used star points for instantaneous movement.

Ling Weiyang’s movement closely resembled Sun Wukong’s Spatial Sand, only faster and with minimal spatial distortions. The only clue was the scintillation before he moved. To disrupt the Pioneer’s predictions, Ling Weiyang lit up multiple star points each time he moved. This back-and-forth persisted for an hour before the Pioneer suddenly halted his attacks.

Ling Weiyang appeared, panting lightly, while the Pioneer smiled confidently. “How do you feel? Don’t think you’re the only one capable of such attacks. And, I now possess the Power of the Stars too. Let’s begin the second round!” As the Pioneer spoke, the nine steles activated simultaneously.

Upon activation, the nine steles vanished, traversing through the Pioneer’s star points. The ensuing attack was several times more complex than before. Previously, each stele attacked individually and returned to the Pioneer, requiring only singular evasions. However, the Pioneer’s dense star points now filled the space, and the stele moved between them, making the attacks rapid and unpredictable.

Moreover, the Pioneer’s observation of Ling Weiyang’s movements revealed a pattern in the shape of a Kirin. In the fourth breath following the nine steles’ activation, Ling Weiyang was struck, using the Demon Emperor Halberd to block the attack. However, he was knocked off his trajectory, into another star point. Whether this was intentional or accidental remains unclear.

Despite this, Ling Weiyang was hit again during the twelfth breath, his block slightly slower this time. The stele struck the Demon Emperor Halberd, reflecting off and hitting him. (To be continued. If you like this work, please vote for it on Qidian. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)